Phyla nodiflora - Creeping Lip Plant

❏ Binomial Name : Phyla nodiflora (L.) Greene.

❏ Synonym : Verbena nodiflora,Lippia nodiflora,Zappania nodiflora

❏ Family : Verbenaceae

❏ Common Name : Creeping Lip Plant

❏ Tamil Name : Podutalei

❏ Hindi Name : Jalpapli

❏ IUCN status: Least Concern

Phyla nodiflora Botanical Description

Prostrate herbs, rooting at nodes. Leaves 1-3 x 0.8-1.5 cm, obovate-spathulate or oblanceolate, sometimes elliptic or cuneiform, base cuneate, margin sharply serrate above the middle, apex rounded or obtuse, fleshy, glabrescent to appressed pubescent; petiole to 8 mm long, decurrent. Flowers 5-merous, sessile, aggregated in axillary, globose-capitate or elongate, cylindric, stalked spikes, 1-2.5 cm long when mature and 6-9 mm across; peduncle solitary in eachaxil, 1.5-6 cm long. Bracts small, closely imbricate, obovate. Calyx cupular, aboutequalling the corolla tube, deeply 2-cleft; lobes lanceolate. Corolla pink to white, 2-2.5 mm long, salver-form, 2-lipped, upper lip 2-lobed, emarginate, lower 3-lobed. Stamens 4, included. Drupe c. 2 mm long, enclosing two, 1-celled pyrenes. Fl. &Fr.: November-December

Phyla nodiflora Medicinal uses

❀ The plant is anodyne, antibacterial, astringent, carminative, deobstruent, diuretic, emmenagogue, emollient, febrifuge, parasiticide and refrigerant

❀ An infusion is drunk as a post-partum tonic

❀ The juice of the plant is cooling and is used to relieve minor gastric troubles, fevers, coughs and colds

❀ A paste or poultice is also applied to swollen cervical glands, to erysipelas, burns, and to chronic indolent ulcers

❀ The juice of the root is used in the treatment of gastric troubles

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